Interview: Carolyn Brown

carolynbrownLiterary Escapism is excited to welcome author Carolyn Brown to the floor today.  Carolyn is celebrating teh release of her second novel in her Lucky series – One Lucky Cowboy.

Jane Day is on the run from the paid assassin who had been her fiancé. In Wichita Falls, Texas, she meets Nellie Luckadeau, a spitfire of an old lady who desperately needs someone to work on her ranch. But Nellie’s drop-dead gorgeous grandson “Lucky Slade” is sure he can spot a con artist a mile away. He’s determined not to let some upstart like Jane fleece his granny.

When his signature intimidation methods don’t convince Jane to leave, he pours on the charm to make her spill what she’s up to. She’s happy to play along, but she’s not going to let this hot, hostile cowboy run her off his land when all she needs is a lucky break…

If you’re in the mood for a great romance, then you need to check this out.  Want a chance to win the first two novels in Carolyn’s Lucky series? – Lucky in Love and One Lucky Cowboy? Then stick around.
______________________________________________

Good morning and thank you inviting me to your site. I believe that reading is a wonderful means of escape so it’s a pleasure to be here with you folks at Literary Escapism.

Your latest novel, One Lucky Cowboy, was recently published. For those of my readers who haven’t come a cross it yet, can you give us a brief look into your story and what people can look forward to reading?

One Lucky Cowboy is the story of Slade Luckadeau and Jane Day. Slade thinks that Jane Day is a con artist out to fleece his Granny but all she really wants is a place to hole up and hide from a hit man for six weeks. She complicates his life and his heart and he wants her gone. She’s found a safe refuge in Ringgold, Texas and doesn’t plan to leave no matter what kind of fight he throws at her. It’s only for a short time and she’s done with trusting men, no matter what form or shape they come in. Slade is determined to prove he’s right and Jane digs in her heels at the ranch. Neither trusts the other, not until their very lives depend on it.

I’m told One Lucky Cowboy is part of an ongoing series; what can you tell us about the Luckadeau series as a whole? How does One Lucky Cowboy fit into the series?

The Luckadeau men are cousins: Beau, Slade and Griffin. They are all hot-headed, sexy-as-hell ranchers who meet their matches in Milli, Jane and Julie. One Lucky Cowboy is the second book in the trilogy. Jane and Slade lock horns from the moment they meet and it looks like it’ll take dynamite to blow the mistrust out of their hearts.

What is it about the men and women of this series that drew you to tell their stories? Are any of the characters a reflection on or inspired by someone else?

The characters said I would tell their stories or they’d bug me every day until I did. They did so I did. They are stories of three cousins who meet three strong, sassy southern women. At first I didn’t think they were a reflection on anyone, but on second thought they are. If a handsome, strong-willed cowboy looks in the mirror he’ll see himself in Slade, Beau or Griffin. If a determined willful woman sees her reflection she could be looking at Milli, Jane or Julie. So with that in mind, yes, they are inspired by every cowboy in Texas and every woman who knows her mind and stands up for her rights.

Do you have plans to continue with this series? Do you have any other projects in the works that you can tease us with?

This series ends with Getting Lucky (Jan. 1, 2010). I’m working on another series for Sourcebooks. The Honky Tonk Series, a four book series, will debut with I Love This Bar in June 2010, followed by Hell Yeah, My Give a Damn’s Busted, and Honky Tonk Christmas. Each book is set in the Honky Tonk, an old beer joint in Mingus, Texas (Population 238) and is filled with quirky characters, hunky cowboys and brassy bar maids.

Have you written anything you wouldn’t want your mother to read?

No, but she’s read things she probably wouldn’t want me to know about! My mother is 82 and in a nursing home. Until recently she read all my books but her eyesight prevents her from reading much anymore. One of my books was mentioned from the pulpit at a local church on Sunday morning and another was signed and sent to Barbara Bush, former First Lady. Now, you’ve got me wondering if they blushed!

So the question has to be asked; how hard is it to come up with the hot and sexy love scenes? Do you test any of the strange ideas with your partner before you write about them?

The difficult part is writing something fresh even with a hot and sexy love scene. A story: When my first books came out my cute young neighbor asked me if I had written those steamy scenes from experience. She said that if I had she was sending her young, cute husband to lunch with my husband. I never thought about testing an idea but it seems like an interesting notion.

Why were you drawn to the romance genre? Have you thought of venturing into other genres or are you strictly a romance writer?

I’m in the process of polishing a women’s mainstream fiction book for my agent to pitch. I love writing romance and will probably always write it, but it would be fun to do both.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

In 1966 I crawled on a Greyhound Bus in Ardmore, Oklahoma headed to Mount Union, Pennsylvania to marry Charles Brown. We’d never met but we’d been writing to each other for a couple of years. I had graduated from high school two weeks before and he was coming home from Germany where he’d been stationed for two years in the Army. Six weeks after I arrived we were married. I was seventeen and he was twenty. Forty-three years later he’s a retired English teacher and I’m a romance writer. We have three children, enough grandchildren to keep us young, and are still best friends. I love writing and my husband is my biggest supporter. If I’m in the middle of an important scene he knows his way around the kitchen. Life is good!

When you’re not slaving away at he computer writing your own novels, who do you enjoy curling up with and why? Do you tend to stick to novels in the romance genre or do you venture into other areas? Have you noticed your reading preferences changing as you’ve developed as an author?

I’m a very eclectic reader. I love a good story whether it’s romance, mystery, mainstream or just a dang good story. Favorite authors? Nora Roberts, Leon Uris, O’Henry, Sue Grafton, Faulkner, Randy Wayne White and J. A. Jance come to mind. To list them all would mean going out for another ream of paper. I love and own all of LaVyrle Spencer’s romance books and we almost had a wake at our house when she retired. My reading preferences haven’t changed but my reading time has. I cherish each moment I can curl up and read. A good day in my world is when I can write 5000 words and still have time to read a novel before bedtime.

If you were to write yourself into any of your novels, what kind of character would you be?

A sassy, southern woman who knows what she wants and goes after it like a coyote after a cottontail rabbit.

_______________________________________________

Thank you Carolyn for visiting Literary Escapism.

Contest Time! We’re giving away the first two books in Carolyn’s Lucky series – Lucky in Love and One Lucky Cowboy and all you have to do is answer this one simple question: If you were to write yourself into any of your novels, what kind of character would you be? Remember, you do have to answer the question in order for your comment to count. The contest is open to everyone, so everyone overseas can join in the fun as well.

As always, if you want more chances to win, you can post about today’s contest on your blog, social network, or anywhere you can. Digg it, stumble it, twit it (#litesc), share it with the world. Wherever you share it, make sure you add a link to it along with your answer (all in the same post please). The more places you share it, the more entries you get.

For more entries, preorder the third Lucky novel, Getting Lucky, or purchase any novel through LE’s Amazon store sometime during this contest and send a copy of the receipt VIA email for your purchase to: myjaxon AT gmail DOT com. Each purchase is one entry and it has to be through the LE Link.

Join the Literary Escapism Facebook page and you’ll get an additional entry. Make sure you leave a comment here so I know that’s why you’re joining. Only new readers to the group will be considered.

For an additional entry, subscribe to Literary Escapism’s newsletter in the sidebar. All current subscribers will also have an additional entry.

I’ll determine the winner with help from the Research Randomizer. All entries must be in by midnight on November 10th.

About Jackie 3282 Articles
I am a 30-something SAHM with two adorable boys and a supportive husband who is very tolerant of my reading addiction. I love to read and easily go through about a dozen books a month – well I did before I had kids. Now, not so much. After my first son was born, I began to take my hobby of reviewing a little more serious and started Literary Escapism to help with my sanity. I love to discuss the fabulous novels I’ve read and meeting all the wonderful people in the book blogging community has been amazing.

16 Comments

  1. Good Morning everyone,
    Thanks for having me on your site today. I’m glad to be here. Good luck to the folks who share what character they’d be if they could write themselves into a novel!
    Carolyn Brown

  2. If I were to write myself into a novel as a character I would want to be a strong, independent woman looking for a man to sweep her off her feet.

  3. I would have to say that I would want be like Willow. It is probably the first book of Carol’s that I read. The independent, spunky, adventuristic character of Willow kept me coming back for more. I would love to be that type of character.

    Sandra

  4. I would love to write myself into a romance novel.I think I’d be spunky, witty and hard to resist. :)

    Love Carolyn Brown’s books. Every single one is a fabulous treat.

  5. If I could write myself into a romance novel, I would be an Annie Oakley type of woman before her time and very rustic. I would be hiding in the rocks of Devil’s Den and trying to convince myself that I didn’t need a man to be happy!!! Of course, cousin Carol would write in a man who I would at first spar with and then sparks would fly…you know the rest.

  6. If I could be anyone character in a novel I would be a strong woman with martial arts skills. I would love to be able to protect myself and not have someone do it for me.

  7. I think if I were going to be a character in a book I’d want to be smart, a bit sassy and quirky, fun, and the solver of any mystery that may arise. :)

    I loved hearing your love story. :) Now that’d be a good romance novel!!!

  8. Hi Carolyn! Congratulations on the new release!

    I think if I were to be a character I’d want to be completely different than what I am. Not saying I’m bad or anything, just it’d be nice to step out of the box and be something different, if just for a short time. Kinda weird, but it’d work for me.

  9. If I wrote myself in a novel I would describe myself as a daring, saucy, wicked woman who needs a strong man who can tame me.

  10. If i wrote my self in a novle id bethe quiet beauty that no one crossed id be loving and kind to those who iloved and everyone else would know i could be just as deadly to those i didnt

    im already a subscriber and i already added you to facebook As Beverly Gordon

    i shared on my facebook page

Comments are closed.